Name: Sifu Chris Honcik
1. Age: 49
2. marital status: married
3. kids: THOR!
4. Number of years training with Shaolin-Do 13 (5 years away)
5. Any training in martial
arts prior to Shaolin-Do (if so please describe type, time-line, etc...)
1 semester of Shotokan Karate in college
6. Any defining moments in your training? Revelations, decisions,
etc... (please explain) There were several of these. One of
the more memorable ones was when I was sparring Mstr Joe and he was
taking the opportunity to work on my
stomach meridian. I was wondering why he was targeting my chest
with strikes and kicks. At some point developed kind of a queasy,
pukey feeling. Afterwards he explained some things and I realized that
there was much more to this martial art that I had previously thought.
It opened up another dimension to the art.
7. What do you like the most about your training? The least?
The hard physical workouts (like conditioning class) were the best.
There was a big feeling of accomplishment after each of those, plus
the endorphin rush that came with it. Also the spirit of camaraderie
that came with being part of the Austin school was great. Least
favorite – we used to do Mantis conditioning class on Tuesday nights
at the Lamar school. I was not very fond of the 4x4 beatings.
Whacking the nipples was the worst.
8. Which animal has been your favorite so far and why? (Kung Fu
fighting style, that is) I like the Tiger system since it fits fairly
well to my style. It has ruthless, straight-forward attacks, a
few deceptive attacks and applications from the katas come fairly easily.
9. Which belt level really started influencing the way you felt
about kung fu or t'ai chi and can you explain how? 1st
Black. You have a bigger feeling of accomplishment than the lower
belts and yet there is a feeling of humility for what lies ahead.
I realized the pace had been notched up when Mstr Joe was teaching me
5 different katas as a new black belt.
10. Do you have a favorite weapon and why? Spear.
It is hard to carry under your jacket, that is true, but it is a hard
weapon to beat due to its long striking distance.
11. Do you have a favorite kata (open hand or weapon) and why?
My favorite changes from time to time. Right now I like Pa Kua.
It can be performed almost anywhere, it is elegant, yet rich in fighting
applications. Just the fact of stepping away from a linear fighting
style is enough to confuse many people. There is always something
new to learm from practicing this kata.
12. Do you have a funny kung fu story? Something you did or saw
in a class, seminar, tournament or demo that you want to tell us?
Mstr Joes and some students were doing a demo at an Asian festival in
downtown Austin. We did some katas, some short board breaks and
at the end Mstr. Joe put in some long board breaks. We went through
San He Chuan and did some of the standard breaks, arm, shoulder, back.
I was going last with a break across the abdomen. When Mstr Joe
started lining up the board for the break, a little girl near the front
of the audience started crying and said,
"Not the tummy…"
13. Do you have any favorite people to spar with and if so, why?
It has been a while… I think that you can learn something from anyone
that you spar. Some of my favorites were Mstr Joe,
Southard, Chunn, O'Brien, Pidlypchak, Ryon Day, Paul Davis,
Corey Machado.
13.5. Which is your favorite I Ching Ching exercise?
I like #25 where you straighten your body, put your elbows in your abdomen
and balance on your hands. Except I just reviewed my notes and
saw that this is supposed to start from a sitting posture. ???
Maybe I don't like #25…
14. Do you have any other hobbies and what are they...tell us
about that. Travel, cycling, running, reading, investing, geopolitics,
guerrilla cabinetry
15. What's something that people might be surprised to learn
about you? I was an extra in the movie, The Newton Boys.
16. What is your favorite food? I eat and enjoy pretty
almost any food..
17. What is your least favorite food? I ate some deep
fried grubworms in Korea once. They really did not taste that
bad, but when you look down and see that you are eating white larva,
it just kind of turns your stomach. It was probably from too many
bad experiences with maggots while growing up on a farm.
18. Do you play any musical
instruments and if so, what are they? Play? Probably
not. I am a hacker on the guitar and with the amount of time that
I spend on it, will always remain so.
19. Do you have a favorite actor/actress? singer/group? movie
or movie genre? I think entertainers are over-hyped.
People look to their political or philosophical advice when in reality
their lives are generally more messed up than average. I do like
good acting and a good story. My favorite movie is American Beauty.
Every time I watch it, I find it uplifting.
